Picture puzzle



A. F. DECKER PICTURE PUZZLE Feb. 27, 1934.

Filed Dec. 14, 1952 Y Z WENTOZ- Patented Feb. 27, 1934 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE PICTURE PUZZLE V Ammiel F. Decker, Pelham, N. Y.

Application December 14, 1932 Serial No. 647,158

Claims. (Cl. 273-157) Manufacturers of cut up or jig saw picture puzzles have accordingly had forced upon them the demand for a greatly increased number of such puzzles at a low cost.

My invention solves this problem furnishing for the first time two complete cut up picture puzzles in each puzzle with a means for identifying one or both picture sides at substantially the cost of one, thereby furnishing twice as many out up picture puzzles at little if any additional cost.

By this reduced cost a much greater demand for such puzzles will thereby be created resulting in an immediate and substantial increase in the employment of labor.

Referring to the drawing, Figure 1 is a top plan view of one picture side of my device.

Figure 2 is a top plan view of the other picture side of my device.

Figure 3 is a top plan View of one of the cut up pieces of my device.

Figure 4 is an edge or cross section of the piece shown in Figure 3, enlarged and broken at the ends for convenience in illustration.

Figure 5 is an edge or cross section similar to Figure i, but showing a different construction.

Figure 6 is an edge or cross section similar to Figures 4 and 5, but showing a third construction.

Figure 7 is an edge or cross section similar to Figures l, 5 and 6 and showing a fourth construction.

Figure 8 is an edge or cross section similar to Figures 4, 5, 6 and '7 and showing a fifth construction.

In the drawing 7 is one picture side and 8 is the other picture side of my puzzle which has the usual card board center 9 on which may be mounted a colored paper 10 of substantial thickness of red and a colored paper 11 of substantial thickness of blue may be mounted on the other side so that the picture side 7 is mount- 55 ed over the red underground paper 10 and the picture side 8 is mounted over the blue underground paper 11.

In this way, as the pictures are cut up in the usual well known manner into pieces 14 on the lines 12, the edges or cross sections of the pieces 14, as shown in Figure 4, have the picture side 7 with the red colored portion 10 immediately thereunder and adjacent thereto, the card board center 9 thereunder, then the blue colored portion 11 thereunder and immediately adjacent to the second picture side 8 which is mounted therei over.

This same effect of a colored portion 10 and 11 in contrasting colors may be secured by impregnating the card board center 9 on each side to the desired depth.

Figure 5 shows an edge or cross section in which a red colored paper 10 of substantial thickness may be mounted on the card board 9 so that when picture side 7 is mounted over 10 and 8 is mounted over 9, then the colored section 10 indicates the means for identifying and selecting all of the pieces of the puzzle comprising the picture side 7 and placing them with the picture Figure 7 shows a fourth construction of my device in which an indentation 15 is made on the edge of each piece 14 near the picture side 7.

Figure 8 shows a fifth construction of my device in which a pin 16 is mounted in the edge of each piece 14 near the picture side 7.

The contrasting color layers in all of these structures may be any suitable contrasting colors and red and blue are referred to herein only as the outstanding examples of such contrasting colors.

These layers of color may be produced by either laminating or combining two layers of contrasting colored material or compositions such as paper. wood, colored pulp or other suitable material or composition. Or one layer of one material and one of another such as one layer of wood and one layer of paper or colored pulp may be used. Also one oi the layers may be thick and the other thin soas to distinguish one picture side from the other by this means.

The one or two layers of color may also be secured by impregnating the surface of the center material on opposite sides to a suflicient depth so that the color will be readily distinguished in any cross section or on the edges of the pieces 14 of the puzzle.

The pictures '7 and 8 may be mounted on the center material in any well known manner such as printing, stamping, stenciling, by decalcomania, painting, photographing or lithographing either directly on the center material 9 or on a separate sheet and then securing the same to each side of the center 9. Or a has relief may be secured by impressing the picture on the paper or composition. I I

The puzzle may be assembled and may be cut up after being assembled in any of the well known Ways such as stamping, dieing, jig sawing or cutting up by hand saw, but it will be apparent that the assembly must be complete with the picture sides 7 and 8 complete before the puzzle is cut up into pieces 14 by any of such well known methods.

Any indicating means such as a cross 13 ma be used on the same picture side of each of the cut up pieces 14 as an indicating means for all faces of the pieces 14 belonging to one picture side such as 7.

One'of the puzzles on the picture sides '7 or 8 may be an advertisement consisting entirely of words or of a trade mark or other advertising picture or illustration to be solved by piecing it together in the parts 14 the same as any picture puzzle.

My device may be made and sold without cutting up the same as the purchaser may choose to cut it up into pieces 14 in any particular pattern and on any desired cut up lines 12. It might also be sold in sections in the form of a serial picture puzzle but in the cut up form the same as or similar to that shown in Figures 1 and 2.

The pictures 7 and 8 may also be printed on a cloth or felt or other suitable material which in itself embodies an identifying coloring on the cut edges of the pieces 14. The cloth, paper or composition constituting the base for the pictures 7 and 8 serves in my device as a binder for the center member 9 and protects and reenforces ly illustrative of a particular way of accomplishing my purpose and my application covers all variations in such materials and methods which secure the result defined in the claims herein.

I claim:

1. In a cut up picture puzzle a central body portion having a complete picture on each side and means on the cut surfaces of each piece of said puzzle to definitely distinguish one picture surface from the other picture surface thereof.

2. In a cut up picture puzzle having a picture on each side, means on each piece for clearly indicating one picture side of said puzzle comprising a layer of color immediately under said indi-.. cated picture side.

3. In a cut up picture puzzle having a complete picture on each side, separate means on each piece to indicate each of said picture sides comprising a layer of one color immediately under. one picture side and a layer of a contrasting color immediately under the other picture side.

4. A picture puzzle having a picture on each side and means therein for definitely identifying one picture side in each piece, regardless of the. number of pieces into which it is cut including 110 a thin and a thick layer joined together by a central layer and over which said pictures are mounted on each side.

5. A jig saw puzzle piece carrying portions of. pictures or designs on opposite faces thereof and 115 comprising ply board presenting an edge having contrasting ply portions thereof providing key means for distinguishing said pictures or designs.

AMMIEL F. DECKER. 

